International migrants send home over US$ 400 billion a year, yet they and their families often lack basic social protection. That is where microinsurance can step in – Published on ILO, Oct. 29, 2012.

GENEVA (ILO News) – Migrants often serve as the equivalent of an informal insurance policy when adversity strikes their families back home but they themselves tend to be vulnerable and have limited access to social protection in host countries. Insurance could help address some of the risks involved but it is often too costly, complex and difficult to access for many low-income migrants. Continue Reading…

Interview with historian James McPhersonJM – Published on WSWS, by Tom Mackaman TM, Oct. 29, 2012.

World Socialist Web Site writer Tom Mackaman recently spoke with historian James McPherson on the Emancipation Proclamation and the Civil War. McPherson is professor emeritus of history at Princeton University and the author of a number of books on the Civil War, including the Pulitzer Prize-winning Battle Cry of Freedom … //Continue Reading…

… In a congenitally corrupt social order, to speak against corruption is like looking for fresh water in the middle of the ocean. The higher level corruption is a criminal enterprise; the middle level corruption is about greed; the lower level corruption is a combination of imitating the higher-ups and about day-to-day needs. The thing with a country like India is that those who want power wish to keep it because they can get money. There is no notion of power that can be used for social good. Simply none. Continue Reading…

Although tourist flows to Egypt have improved, more needs to be done to get the most out of the industry – Published on Al-Ahram weekly online, by Ahmed Kotb, 18 – 24 October 2012.

Training, an open skies policy and targeting new markets are some of the suggestions offered by tourism experts to help increase the flow of tourists to Egypt. That flow had been drastically affected by political instability following the 25 January Revolution. Tourism dropped by around 30 per cent in 2011. Continue Reading…

As Egypt’s problematic democratic transition stumbles forward the judiciary has emerged as a proxy battleground for the fight between Islamists and their opponents – Published on Al-Ahram weekly online, by Amira Howeidy, 18 – 24 October 2012.

… Now, though, it is the judiciary that is increasingly occupying centre stage. Reeling from decades of executive interference and as mired in corruption as any other part of the Mubarak-era state, the judiciary is issuing court rulings that have completely changed the direction of the transition, and which continue to do so.

In April a court dissolved the Constituent Assembly. In June the Supreme Constitutional Court recommended the dissolution of the Islamist-dominated People’s Assembly five months after its election, on the grounds that the election law was unconstitutional. Egypt has remained without a parliament since. SCAF granted itself legislative powers which were then assumed by Morsi when, as president, he sacked the army generals and assumed the prerogatives they had granted themselves. Continue Reading…

Published on ZNet, interview with Jacob Mukherjee and Alex Doherty, October 21, 2012.

Demand the Impossible is a new project aimed at helping young people learn about and get involved in radical politics and political activism. It debuted this summer at Goldsmiths College, where twenty 16-19 year olds came for a week-long summer school led by Jacob Mukherjee and Ed Lewis, one of the co-editors of NLP. Jacob spoke to Alex Doherty about the project:

Can you explain to us what the aims of the Demand the Impossible! summer school were, what the course consisted of and why it was targeted at teenagers in particular? Continue Reading…

Frankfurt — The global stock exchanges may have taken a hammering in 2011 but it appears the world’s super rich have still managed to weather the economic crisis quite well, thanks to varied investments in fixed-term deposits, artwork and even diamonds.

The dollar millionaires of this world registered a combined loss of 700 billion dollars last year, just a little less than the $880 billion the countries of the euro zone have so far had to pump into the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) in efforts to protect the faltering euro currency. But for the world’s rich the loss meant a modest and eminently manageable wealth reduction of 1.7 per cent. Continue Reading…

TUTAKAL (Iraq) – Amena practised female genital mutilation (FGM) in her remote village in Iraqi Kurdistan for so many years that she struggles to recall how many girls passed through her hands. Continue Reading…

The world-famous Iranian film director, who is currently making his new film, Muhammad (PBUH) on the life of Prophet of Islam (PBUH), addressed the Istanbul World Forum on Saturday October 13, asking why Israel can stockpile up to 300 nuclear warheads in its nuclear arsenal without allowing international bodies to inspect them. The forum was held on October 13-14, 2012, at Istanbul Congress Center in Turkey. Continue Reading…

A court in Hamburg has handed down prison sentences to 10 Somali pirates who hijacked the German freighter cargo ship MS Taipan in 2010. The trial lasted almost two years, making it one of the longest in postwar German history. It was hampered primarily by linguistic difficulties and problems establishing the age of the defendants. Continue Reading…

Chapter Four of ‘Left’ Wing Communism An Infantile Disorder – Published on Dissident Voice, by Thomas Riggins, October 19, 2012.

In chapter four of his book “Left Wing” Communism: An Infantile Disorder Lenin describes the struggle of the Bolsheviks to combat those enemies of the working class movement who were themselves acting within that movement ostensibly in the interests of establishing socialism. Continue Reading…

About 750,000 Iranians residing in West Coast state hold divergent views on their native country’s place in the US vote – Published on AlJazeera, by D. Parvaz, Oct. 18, 2012.

… Two parties, one policy:

Still, some say Republican and Democrat policies towards Iran are mostly the same.

“Honestly, to me, I see no difference in the parties when it comes to Iran. It’s just political rhetoric to get the votes. I don’t think either party is really going to start another war in the Middle East,” said Sepideh Mortazavi, 35, a criminal defence attorney who is also the Orange County ambassador for the National Iranian American Council. Continue Reading…

In midtown Manhattan, police officers shot and killed an African-American man in August after he had walked across Times Square waving a kitchen knife. His last moments tell the story of a broken law enforcement system in New York City …//Continue Reading…

Documents Trace Effort to Declassify the Operations of America’s Intelligence Satellite Agency – Published on The National Security Archive, Electronic Briefing Book No. 392, by Jeffrey T. Richelson, October 4, 2012.

… Today, the National Security Archive posts the fourth in a series of electronic briefing books concerning secrecy and satellite reconnaissance – one of the most sensitive areas of U.S. intelligence-gathering. Specific satellite programs whose declassification is covered in this briefing book include some of the earliest and, at the time, most secretive programs of their kind: CORONA, ARGON, LANYARD, GRAB, POPPY, GAMBIT, HEXAGON, and QUILL. Continue Reading…

Three books. Three eye-opening accounts of tectonic shifts in American life. And one extraordinary analysis of the intimate connections between the new economy, the political power structure and the historic rise of one-person households … //

In a keen showing of Egyptian interest to foster ties with African countries, especially the Nile Basin states, President Mohamed Morsi arrived in Uganda on Tuesday for a one-day visit where he participated in the country’s Independence Day celebrations with the president of Uganda Yoweri Musevini and other African leaders … //

… Egyptian diplomats say that it is unfair to make a sweeping complaint about Cairo’s commitment to Africa and insist that it was specifically ousted president Hosni Mubarak who declined to visit African countries since the attempt on his life in Ethiopia in 1995. Continue Reading…

Voters in Eastern Cape are deeply divided: as many as 80% could vote for Motlanthe (right) in a run-off against Zuma (left).

Yet the near 100% support for Zuma from KwaZulu-Natal gives him a head start over his rivals – Kgalema Motlanthe and Tokyo Sexwale – behind whom the “Anyone but Zuma” (ABZ) campaign is throwing its support. Even if Eastern Cape swings fully behind Motlanthe and Sexwale, the ABZ faction still has a mountain to climb in its bid for sweeping changes in the ANC’s national leadership.

Whenever financial swindlers prosper at the expense of investors or a bank jiggers interest rates to bugger their competitors or tax evaders flee fiscal crises or rent gouging petrol monarchies recycle profits or oligarchs pillage economies and drive millions to drink, drugs and destitution they find a suitable secure sanctuary in London. They are wooed and pursued by big British realtors eager to sell them multi-million dollar estates, trophy properties and landmark mansions. Continue Reading…

Political leaders did not create any new global treaties at the recent Rio+20 summit. Instead, they acknowledged and reaffirmed their commitments from previous global conferences and emphasized the need for implementation. Implementation, however, can occur when effective institutions are in place, adequate resources are available, and citizens are genuinely engaged. Continue Reading…

If I did not have an SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act (a law meant to prevent Dalits from being harassed or victimized by non-Dalits in one form or the other) case filed against me a year and half ago in the nearest police station by my well-meaning Dalit student friends, merely because when in an official position, I attempted to prevent them from being deliberately provocative towards believing Hindus from communities other than the one to which they belonged, perhaps I would’ve been in a state of doubt. Continue Reading…

… The Disappearance of Public Intellectuals – Published on Counterpunch, by Henry Giroux, October 8, 2012.

With the advent of Neoliberalism, we have witnessed the production and widespread adoption within many countries of what I want to call the politics of economic Darwinsim. As a theater of cruelty and mode of public pedagogy, economic Darwinism removes economics and markets from the discourse of social obligations and social costs. The results are all around us ranging from ecological devastation and widespread economic impoverishment to the increasing incarceration of large segments of the population marginalized by race and class. Economics now drives politics, transforming citizens into consumers and compassion into an object of scorn. The language of rabid individualism and harsh competition now replaces the notion of the public and all forms of solidarity not aligned with market values … //Continue Reading…

With the quadrennial presidential election extravaganza reaching its peak, it’s useful to ask how the political campaigns are dealing with the most crucial issues we face. The simple answer is: badly, or not at all. If so, some important questions arise: why, and what can we do about it? There are two issues of overwhelming significance, because the fate of the species is at stake: environmental disaster, and nuclear war … //Continue Reading…

Watch first the video: Vaughan Smith explains why they will not be forfeiting Assange’s bail money, 1.24 min, published on The Guardian, by Robert Booth, October 3, 2012: Julian Assange’s supporters have pleaded in court to keep £140,000 in bail money that is in jeopardy because of the WikiLeaks founder’s decision to seek political asylum in the Ecuadorean embassy in London (also on YouTube). Continue Reading…

The current economic recovery, such as it is, is actually exacerbating the problem of inequality. One side of that problem is the growth of corporate profits, and consequently the rise in the stock market and high-tend salaries. The other side is the growth of low-paying jobs.

New research by the National Employment Law Project [pdf] shows that, during the recession, employment losses occurred throughout the economy, but were concentrated in mid-wage occupations. By contrast, during the so-called recovery, employment gains have been concentrated in lower-wage occupations, which grew 2.7 times as fast as mid-wage and higher-wage occupations … //Continue Reading…

… The rhetoric of the well orchestrated anti-Iranian crowds outside was even bloodier than the Iranians had ever been with former Republican speaker of the House and GOP presidential Candidate Newt Gingrich calling for immediate U.S. airstrikes. Gingrich sounded like his main financial backer, right-wing casino mogul and supporter of Israeli settlers, Shedon Adelson, who poured millions into his failed campaign before shifting his resources to Mitt Romney. Continue Reading…

Chomsky identified the two greatest world issues at hand as climate change and nuclear weapons proliferation. Contextualizing his remarks, he cited from the New York Times recent findings, that the level of summer Arctic ice had reached its lowest point since scientists began satellite imaging the ice in the ‘70s. He then discussed the Republican and Democratic Party platforms’ opinions on what should be done about climate change. He concluded that the difference between the two parties was merely the level of enthusiasm with which the proverbial lemmings chose to throw themselves off the cliff. The Republicans and Democrats both call for more oil drilling and/or fracking, so, lemmings, according to Chomsky … //Continue Reading…

America is Exhibit A on how democracies aren’t supposed to work. Of course, the US isn’t one now and never was – Published on Indybay.org, by Stephen Lendman, Sept. 30, 2012.

Contrary to popular myth, it wasn’t established as one. America’s founders had other ideas. From May to September 1787, 55 self-serving wheeler-dealers met in Philadelphia. Today we’d call them a Wall Street crowd. What they designed fell far short of common beliefs. Continue Reading…

One thing unites Khuê Pham, Özlem Topçu and Alice Bota: They are German citizens and the children of migrants in a country that has long struggled to define its relationship with foreigners. In an interview with SPIEGEL ONLINE, they describe the alienation of being first-generation Germans, but also their new role as their home becomes more cosmopolitan … //Continue Reading…